CHAPTER 14: ESCAPE BY DEFAULT
"Do you hear that?" Daniel asked.
Nesra shook his head as 'no', but then an unexpected blue wave cascaded past them, while a sharp sound resonated in its wake. Next, the energy field distorted as if a heat mirage and disappeared at a zip tone. Overhead, the lights instantly altered from white to blue emergency lights, leaving the men staring astonished.
"Okay, that just happened." Daniel said with a scowl, whereas a shrewd sneer quirked Nesra's lips.
"My spy has come through for us, Dr Jackson."
"Who now?" He asked puzzled, then before the researcher could reply, he raised his hand to silence him. Attuned his ears to what he'd heard a second ago, and declared worried. "Someone's shouting for help."
"It's expected. We are not the only ones imprisoned here; even so, we should concentrate on . . ."
The archaeologist ignored him, rising to his feet in an abrupt manner. The sprained wrist burned in protest, while his shoulder numbed with the deed, but he groaned through it and progressed for the corridor outside their cell. Nesra quick on his heels.
"Daniel." Sam called out from the right. He turned in her direction, confused at first and then smiled in relief when he saw her.
"Hey."
Upon the call, Daniel's expression suddenly turned surprised as she sprinted for their location, straight for Nesra.
"Whoa, whoa, hang on, Sam." He protested, using his body as a barrier between them. "He only did what he needed in order to survive."
"Daniel, he used us." Sam spat. "He's the reason we're in this mess."
"Dr Jackson, your action is honorable." Nesra stepped away from the cover and looked her in the eye, marked the glimmer of dislike in her gaze and concluded. "Nevertheless, I deserve her anger, likewise the punishment for what I did. Although, do keep in mind, that I am also the reason for our release."
"How fortunate we all are." Sam mocked. "Your timing leaves much to be desired, Nesra. We're still a few men down."
"Speaking of which." Daniel interrupted. "I thought I heard McKay's voice after . . ." He frowned somewhat. "What was that anyhow?"
"It's a transient electromagnetic disturbance. Basically, it's an EMP." Sam answered, eyeing Nesra as she moved between them and jogged towards the end of the corridor.
"Or in this happenstance, it may be that a device caused an electrostatic discharge by injecting a high voltage pulse."
They rounded the corner in tandem, the Lt. Colonel concluding as she scanned the facility's structure.
"Though, an advanced building such as this should have preventive measures in place."
"So then what you're saying is. What had transpired is next to impossible?" Daniel asked as they came to a standstill at McKay's cell.
"Or else, a skeletal orb sent a pulse down the electrical networks present in this said facility." Rodney added as he struggled onto his side. "As well as radiating a distinct burst of energy big enough to render everything in its path inert. Moreover, not only may it have shattered my eardrums, but actually may have extended my death by a fraction." He paused in his effort and gazed up at his audience. "Who said a bee sting ain't helpful?"
The group stayed quiet for a while, observing the physicist's bleak complexion. Particularly Sam, who was concerned how they would get him out of the facility. Not only were his life at stake, but also the General's well-being. Along with Daniel, he would slow them down and timing was of vital import. Moreover, she didn't want two losses on her hands.
"Where's the Lt Colonel?" She asked.
Rodney watched as Nesra entered, knelt beside him and examined the lacerations. He stared with a furrowed brow at the outsider and then hissed in Carter's direction.
"Thanks for the concern, Blondie."
"McKay." Sam warned.
"How the hell should I know? If your blue eyes can't tell you that I'm in dire straits, then obviously you can't see they took him. Just for the record." He smiled cynically, sending Sam's frustration to a new level. "Boy does this look and sound familiar."
"McKay now's not the time for discussion." Daniel reprimanded. "General O'Neill's gone as well."
"That's a real shame." He answered, triggering a certain detest within his teammates. "I know how he feels."
Meanwhile, in the chamber behind them, stood Dario calm and collected. The trígono hovered silently at his back as he announced. "They need the two soldiers for the Predominant."
The group froze as one, staring at each other in surprise.
Sam glanced over her shoulder, noted a dark figure and moved into a side stance, quick on the defense. Dario stepped from the shadows, careful and confident. She and Daniel trailed his movement like hunters as he entered the cell.
"It is good to see you my friend." Nesra declared as he stood from his position and embraced the scout in a hug.
"Hey, what about me?" Rodney entreated.
"You know him?" Daniel asked confounded, ignoring the Canadian, whereas Sam stepped towards him for a closer inspection.
"Whoever he is . . ." She began, wincing at the dark liquid that had pooled on the floor. ". . . he is the reason we're free, and now we have to rely upon him to save you, McKay."
"What?" He whimpered appalled. "You're not serious, Sam?"
"Shut up, Rodney." She advised.
He flinched with the cruel rebuke and focused on calming the nausea teeming in his stomach.
"Or would you like for us to leave you here? By your lonesome self?"
McKay gulped, murmuring expletives under his breath and Sam smiled wryly.
"This one . . ." Dario gestured down at McKay, whose expression imitated that of a deer caught in headlights. ". . . Should be thankful he suffers those injuries, otherwise, he would've suffered a cruel and inhumane death."
He gazed between Daniel and Sam, acknowledging them with a brisk nod.
"Sadly, if you continue with this ludicrous bicker, the same fate awaits your friends." Dario then whispered at Nesra, Daniel's head tilting in their direction with the instruction. "Go, the craft hovers outside this Sector. Trigon and I will see to it that he receives the needed attention."
"Excuse me, who's Trigon? And why is McKay so fortunate?"
The Lt. Colonel and Rodney glanced at Daniel and then at the two natives.
"It's aid and the man contains the Raminian gene, likewise, as do I. You . . ." Dario gestured at Carter. ". . . . should go with Nesra now." He spoke to the researcher. "Asha and the Jaffa shadowed the Governor's craft; they will need your assistance."
With the news, Sam interrupted, eager to go. "Where?"
"I saw them leave for the Vertice Montis."
"Are you certain it's within the mountain?" Nesra asked. "I made sure only Asha has the location."
"I intercepted the coordinates from the Governor's craft. It is indeed there."
Sam nodded her approval, whilst gazing at Daniel. "Stay with McKay, make sure he outlives this mission."
"Roger that."
She then beckoned at the researcher to move. When she remembered something, paused on the threshold and voiced. "We need a means of communication."
Dario dipped his chin at the empty chamber signaling the trígono to come forth. The triangle spiraled left, right and then in the opposite direction. Its audience looking on with wonder as it halted in the corridor. Underneath it, Sam's gear along with additional radios floated in a green energy net.
"I believe this is yours." He swept a hand before him and the object released its catch. "Your friends will not need their weapons, as Trigon will protect us from harm."
"Thank you." Sam said as she grabbed for the P-90, her belt with the Zat and seized a radio.
She handed one over to Daniel, which he inserted into his pants' pocket, while she offered another to Rodney, who accepted it with a terse curtsy.
"Let's go." She instructed Nesra as he received a sidearm from his friend.
"Be safe." Sam said to Daniel.
"You too." He declared as he watched them jog down the corridor.
Five minutes ago, a blue light had flooded towards her, disabling both technology and lights in its wake. Knowing it was Dario's making, she'd called for Aemilius and Clarice and recalled the rest of her security forces from Sector C. Instructing them to focus on containing the rest of the prisoners in the other Sectors.
Now, they were gliding along, vigilant and on the alert for any stragglers. She wouldn't permit the foreigners to leave without her saying so. If Ramin was to be her kingdom, she needed them to achieve it. Simply too much was at stake for everyone, it seemed.
The procession of advancing boots echoed in Yolane's ears, as her guards fell in with her stride. Sidearm poised, she glanced down the parallel passage. Satisfied that all was clear, they moved ahead until the next cross passage filtered into view. Yolane raised her fist in the air. The guards halting with the command.
In the distance, to the left of the corridor, the sound of muted thunderclaps resonated. She beckoned for them go down, stay flush with the wall and be on watch for her signal. Next, she followed the same process and waited.
The sound increased. The advancing figures almost on their position, when they slowed to a halt. Her heart thrummed in her ears, anxiety rising like a tsunami wave.
Did the individuals know of their ambush?
Yolane rose beside the wall, slowly, making her frame as thin as possible. Motioned for the guards to stay. Snaked her handgun forward and lingered in her striking pose. Sweat beaded her temples. Slinked down her cheeks. Cradled at her chin. Whereas her grip on the gun moistened.
She had to admit, it was the first time in years that she'd spearheaded a surprise attack. Where in one, she had to wait for the enemy to make their move and not where her forces ran in with force. She couldn't and wouldn't place her guards in harm's way – it wasn't that type of assignment.
"Stand fast!" She shouted at the unknown figures. "I came to assist you."
She heard familiar voices whisper to one another. A shrewd smirk moved across her face, as they were indeed the ones she was hoping to find.
"Yeah? And how do I know you're not hiding a team in the passage?"
Yolane laughed, enjoying the Lt. Colonel's cautious approach. She didn't blame her for doing so. Though in doing so, she also revealed who she was.
"You don't, but I know you have the leader of the rebellion by your side."
The declaration gave them pause. She holstered the handgun in its case positioned against her belt at her lower back. Revealed an extended hand and heard Sam raise her weapon in defense. She gazed at the guards, dipping her chin to follow the same procedure. Deviance glimmered in their eyes, yet they obeyed and placed their weapons on the floor.
"I have two guards with me. Both are unarmed and as you can see, I am as well."
She strode forward, noting Nesra and the Lt. Colonel trail her movements with their weapons. The guards followed reluctantly and stood behind her, arms propped for them to see.
"You." Sam gestured at Clarice. "Move away from her back. I know she has a holster there."
Clarice narrowed her eyes in anger, nevertheless adhered and stood on Aemilius' right.
"Satisfied, my dear?" Yolane asked.
"What do you want, Commander?" Nesra inquired. "I thought you would be by your husband's side. Observing how he killed two innocent men in order to save his precious city from the Lucian Alliance."
"What?" It was the first Sam had heard about their interference and Yolane discerned it immediately.
"Yes, Samantha. The only reason why you are of use to Titan is due to the Alliance's interest in you and your team. This you will witness when they come in an hour's time."
So then she really was the main cause of the team's troubles. Dismay gripped Sam's emotions as the thought settled. Tears threatened, but she swallowed it, bearing in mind that she still had the opportunity to right a wrong.
Yolane smirked shrewdly, knowing she'd delivered the knockout blow and turned her attention on the researcher.
"Nesra, I propose we work together. I supply the manpower and you the plan."
"Why should he trust you?" Sam challenged
"And why should he trust you? I am Raminian. You, a mere female from beyond the gateway. You have nothing to do with our feat."
"Says the one who oppressed his people. Do you think for one second that he will succumb to the likeness of you?"
"Silence woman!" Yolane commanded in a fierce tone. "If I weren't forced to be at his mercy, you would be facing a firing squad. Not debating like a pompous queen."
Sam smirked at the irony.
Nesra lowered his gaze, wondering whether he should accept her offer or decline it. She'd lost her husband's confidence and there was no question he would purge her along with the rest of the rebellion. He could use her assistance up until he had control of the weapon.
"Very well." He decided.
Yolane smiled appreciative, hiding the glint of victory in her hazel eyes. He was audacious, she gave him that, and yet so naïve. A snake as gentle as a dove was the worst kind of creature. One never knew when it would strike.
Her expression opened up in a loving sneer as Carter protested ardently.
"There's no way you can trust her, Nesra. She's just as guilty as Titan."
"I am aware, Samantha Carter." He said in her direction. "Nevertheless, we need her assistance whether we like it or not."
Sam squared her jaw not liking where this was going. Even so, if she wanted to save the General, a deal with the devil would have to suffice. Only to get what she wanted.
"I have one condition." Nesra declared. To the Colonel's satisfaction. "These guards are the only support you will have at your side. Furthermore, terms of your surrender will follow once the weapon's inoperable."
Yolane snorted at his demand. "You are audacious for a man who has a hand full of foreigners at his side. And need I remind you, that Titan, as well as I, know more about your rebellion than we pretended."
"I do, very much so." Nesra replied in a confident manner. "You are the one who recruited me as a double agent. Who forced me against my will to betray my people. However, do you know that I too, pretended? That the foreigners was a means of a distraction. Since at this very moment, all your forces are at the mercy of mine, including that of the chelónas."
Yolane's smug expression faded, turned solemn as the researcher grinned. Carter stifled a snicker, hopeful until he stated the following.
"Although, even with this power at my disposal, you know only one thing can wipe it away in mere seconds. If the Jaffa and Asha cannot delay your husband, he will initiate Ramin's rebirth. None but his loyal followers will remain alive to forge a new era."
Yolane stared with a blank expression, the words as if a hammer. A sinking feeling formed a pit in her stomach. This was news to her, moreover to Sam, who lowered the P-90, shocked at the revelation. All this time, she'd focused on the mission's failure, on her own failures, trying to rectify it. Not once did she consider that there was more to Ramin than first discussed. Even the Lucian Alliance had a piece of the pie. Going as far as to use an Ancient weapon to lure them to a planet on the verge of an uprise.
"Yes, Commander Yolane, you and your forces were excluded from the beginning. The Alliance was a stall tactic and the foreigners bait to repair the Predominant."
He dipped his head at the guards, who saluted their allegiance and grabbed hold of Yolane. Surprising both her and the Lt. Colonel.
"What's this? I am your Commander!" She struggled in their hold.
"No, I am." Nesra dismissed them with a wave of the hand and turned towards Sam.
"Now, we have to make haste before Titan fulfills his plan and you lose O'Neill to the Predominant."